Chapter 1: System Error
Breach
Chapter 1: System Error
Written by: RobertBel98
Edited by: Trials
I lay upon a patch of grass atop a small hill. The blades beneath tickled against my exposed skin. All around me, the world was bathed in a golden luminescence, which gave everything a soft and warm feeling. Above, gentle wisps of pink cotton danced across the azure sky, reflecting the last remnants of light from the sinking sun.
The celestial ball of fire continued to dip down past the visible earth, its bright yellow glow transitioning into a moderate hue of amber, then to a dark shade of orange. The moon, only slightly visible, hung in its locked orbit, waiting to take its rightful place among the theatre of night. The air chilled. Each gust of wind caused cool sensations to brush along my prone form. As I took a breath, my lungs were filled with the natural crisp taste which I had come to yearn for.
The last of the sun’s golden rays dwindled from sight, as a hollow darkness engulfed the area. However, this empty theatre would soon be filled with countless numbers of glittering spectators, each of them shining their ethereal light down on me.
All of it, the earth, the sky, the air, it was all… perfect… beautiful. The tranquil bliss that filled my senses, it overwhelmed my thoughts. It made me believe that if I’d close my eyes, I could pretend I was the only man in the world, a lone wanderer, who had been gifted a key to a lush sanctuary.
My very being consumed the harmonious energy which radiated from the now darkened realm. The welcomed spirit churned and coursed through my soul, its rhythmic movements as elegant as a composer’s melody, a nocturne, which complimented the night that brought forth its life.
It all felt so right, so natural. It was as if the very land I laid on was an extension of my own body. I felt, I heard, I saw all that it could. This, this was my home. My sight began to haze; sounds were muddled as they entered my ears, and my breaths lengthened in their pace. The alluring song of the night was pulling me deeper into my own mind, isolating me from the outside world. Then, I was gone.
An odd feeling grew in the pit of my stomach; it caused me to writhe in discomfort. As the disturbance increased, I was forced to sit myself up from the unusually brittle surface. As I grasped my center in an attempt to ease the pain, I opened my eyes, but what I saw was not the world that I had left. No, what was there horrified me. There was no grass, no moon no stars in the sky, there was only darkness. My mind raced for words to bring reason to the sight before me, but came up with none.
Hesitantly, I rose up from the surface of the unknown terrain. An odd crunching sound filled my ears with every movement. My head craned rapidly in all directions, my heart pumped faster and faster. I felt scared, and I didn’t know why. But my ignorance did not aid me, for I was trapped in the clutches of fear.
I was left there, alone, all senses unable to bring light to the boundless obscurity. The only thoughts that passed through my mind were questions. Questions of how I came to be in this terrible place. I did not move, nor did I make a sound. I simply stood in silence, helpless, as if waiting for an answer to present itself.
Suddenly, off in the distance, I heard something, a break in the seemingly eternal silence. This sound, it resembled that of crunching glass, it was a sharp and foreboding tone. Whatever it was, it felt… wrong. It made my mind ache. I wanted nothing more than to ignore it, but I couldn’t. It was the only thing I could focus on. The veiled origin of this disturbance slowly increased in volume, and pace. My terrified form shook in anxiousness, not knowing what to do with itself. The sounds were not as tentative, as they grew closer and closer. My heart was jumping out of my chest, my breath loud and panicked. The sounds were right on top of me, when a feeling of utter emptiness pierced my soul. This entity’s touch, it burned like acid, eating away at my essence.
A racking pain pulsed through my legs, as my weak form collapsed onto the cold turf. I wanted to move, to run; to get away. But I just laid there, the very shadow of this hateful place consuming me. This, this was it. I could no longer escape the inevitability. I was trapped, under the will of whatever watched overhead. As I lay there, awaiting the end, I heard something. It wasn’t a sound of my own, nor those of the malevolent spirit that loomed above. It was a voice. Then, the world caught fire.
My eyelids shot open as I was plunged into the conscious world. I collapsed out of my open pod and slammed onto the hard floor, my limp form offered barely any strength to support myself. Frigid beads of sweat seeped through my suit and pooled on the ground below. I felt nauseous and unimaginably perplexed. My innards twisted and knotted up, and the muscles in my abdomen convulsed violently. It felt as if my body was trying to push its way out of my skin. It was agonizing, and torturous.
As I lay broken down on the floor, my vision eventually became clear. And with a stinging pop, my ears were flooded with a flurry of dazed sounds. Sirens were blaring, their deafening tone making it hard to organize my thoughts. My body still surged with sickening levels of agony, but, reluctantly, I sluggishly picked my head up from the metallic surface to catch a glimpse of my surroundings. Pipelines that ran along the sealed pods hissed and rattled vigorously. The sequential valves spewed out thin blasts of boiling steam. The situation took a toll on me, panic beginning to rise. But my bodily instinct kicked in.
Adrenaline erupted into my veins, granting me with a newfound strength. I planted both palms firmly on the ground, and pushed with all my might. The pain was nearly unbearable; it felt as if my muscles would snap. Slowly but surely, I lifted myself into a kneeling position with a loud grunt. After taking a few breaths to ease my already strained lungs, I pressed on. With a bellowing roar, I lifted myself upward. I was standing, though I still stumbled a bit from my lack of energy.
The chaotic scene continued to unfold around me as I hobbled my way across the floor. The pounding of my heart resonated through my skull, and whatever strength I once had was quickly fading. Red lights flashed all around the room, and the space started to fill up with a vapor as thick as smoke. Amidst the turmoil, the gears in my head clicked into action. I needed to get to the lifeboats.
With a new goal in mind, I hastened my pace to the bay door. Eventually, I made my way out of the cryo-bay. The passageways were much clearer, and I could now see where I was going. I started to run forward, the heavy clanks of my boots sounded throughout the halls.
As I made my way to the docking bay, I yelled out. “Andrew, I need you to prepare a lifeboat for me, now!” I commanded. However, there was no response. “Andrew, respond!” Still, there was nothing but silence. A feeling of concern welled inside me, but I still soldiered on. All I could do now was keep running, and pray to God that there wouldn’t be any more surprises.
Without warning, a massive shockwave pulsated through the ship, sending me flat on my face. Pipes rattled, and panels all around me flung open, sending arcs of electrical energy around the tube. A few stray bolts struck right near my head. I could feel the burning intensity of the discharge spread across my face. Once the place settled down a bit, I refocused. With a bit less struggle than prior, I got myself back on my feet.
I turned a corner into the docking bay, and immediately scoured the area. After a few moments, my eyes landed on an open pod about halfway in. Without hesitation, I gunned for it. Small waves erupted around me, making me wobble a bit in my desperate sprint. Once there, I literally dove into the capsule, the door promptly sealing shut behind me with a smooth hum. The tremors were starting to become more violent, and I found it difficult to make my way to the pilot’s chair.
My hands grasped onto any leverage I could find, as I tried to pull myself to the head of the pod. With one final push, I grasped the chair, and hoisted myself upward. My body drooped into the seat and settled down. Straps ejected from both sides and coiled across my torso.
“Andrew, if you’re here, we need to get out of this can, quick!” Once more I received no response. What were once tremors were now full on quakes, this ship was going to hell. Panels and other pieces of the structure fell past the lifeboat, some skimming the shell with a loud scrape. “Andrew, now would be a really good time to wake the hell up!” At first, nothing happened, and for a moment the thought of dying in here seemed extremely prevalent. But then, there was light. All the instruments sparked to life, the numerous controls preparing for immediate departure. I almost screamed out in joy before I was interrupted by a voice I was more than happy to hear.
“Hello sir, I apologize for the delay. There seemed to be some malfunctions with the power grid,” the AI stated.
“Well, as long as you’re here now. Let’s get the hell out of here!” I said with enthusiasm.
“Certainly sir, final preparations for the drop are underway. Due to the extensiveness of the damage, several computing systems have been disabled; causing a network lock down. I just need to finish the network override, and we can be underway-”Andrew’s voice was cut off in a spurt of static, when a massive blast rocketed throughout the complex. Plumes of flame erupted from the surfaces surrounding us, and more and more chunks of the doomed vessel collapsed onto the deck. Panicked, I looked around, only to see a huge girder crash into the pod next to me, right outside my window. The burning husk of imploded metal sunk to the floor.
Shaking it off, I swiftly turned back to the control panel, and rapidly input the correct codes into the system. I needed to complete the override. Chunks of hot metal still rained down past the pod, some just narrowly missing me. More and more pillars of flame shot out from the exposed walls, and the temperature was rising in a hurry. I kept on typing as fast as I could, the sweat that dripped from my palms nearly slipping up my tempo, leaving me to hope I didn't miss a key.
With one final click, the override was complete.The couplings that held the boat in place were released, and I dropped down the exit tube. The capsule picked up speed as it continued its descent, and vibrated from the force of the fall. I was pressed deep into the seat, as I struggled to breathe. Another explosion rattled the consoles on the control panel. Flames peeked over the glass, and spread downward. The pod was shaking with high intensity. Small blotches of black filled my vision, and were quickly glazing over my vision. I was fading out. And all I could do was sit there, and wait. Suddenly, there was a heavy bump, and a sensation of weightlessness overtook me. We were free from the ship. And with that final thought, I succumbed to the overwhelming force.
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not bad for a pre-welcome to Equestria scene where the spaceship is being torn apart by atmospheric re-entry
Aw, was kinda hoping he and the ship would meld together into some sort of synthetic/biological life form. The story pic kinda gave me the idea that was going to happen. Now i find myself wondering if the pic is relevant to the story in some way.
You write good action scenes man... why can I no write them?!
MOAR!
3427139 Thank you.
I half-expected Andrew to say "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave," when it wasn't being responsive.
Yay
you are working on this again 
Great chapter, i do hope the next one will be updated soon.
3426908 Yes, it is. You will find out later...
3428156 Would it surprise you if I said that thought had crossed my mind more than once?
3435619
fc00.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/111/f/7/today____by_triangular_orangutan-d4x3q8b.jpg
3435628 VIRGINIA!!!
3435615 Oooohhhh, can't wait to see. I find my anticipation rising to new heights. Great story BTW.
Also, who is the artist that made the pic? I love it so much i made it my wallpaper.
3436067 Here's a link.
3436067 Oh, and anything particular about the story you like? I just like to get a general consensus on what people enjoy about my writing.
Your flow seems good so far, you'r plot is interesting and thus far unique, and you spelling and grammar seem spot on.
The only other thing needed to make your story one of the ones I fall in love with is a compelling story, and that is yet to be seen. But as things are going with this I would not be surprised if you managed that as well.
........ I want a first contact scenario soon, and I mean SOON.
Or Pinkie'll cut you.
Regardless, another great chapter, keep up the good work.
I see ur using my pic cure to say why?
3607966 Because it was eye catching and relevant to the story
3669248 ok u have my aprovell make it a good one
It looks nice. Not a bad beginning. So I wish you the best with it.
3669248
I just found this story, and I noticed that it hadn't been updated in a while. Any chance you're gonna push out a new chapter any time soon?
Hybrid Librarian, anyone?
Aside from that, I'll like and fave this story to read later. Looks promising.
And a full year hiatus? I'm sorry, but dayum!
Semper-Fi
-Loyal Patriot